


Happily Never After

by Seventypercentstupid



Series: Bryce Lahela one shots [1]
Category: Open Heart (Visual Novels)
Genre: Angst with Sad Ending, F/M, Longing, Wedding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-18
Updated: 2020-12-18
Packaged: 2021-03-10 23:02:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,480
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28145049
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Seventypercentstupid/pseuds/Seventypercentstupid
Summary: Bryce dwells on his memories as he realises that sometimes, falling in love with your best friend doesn’t end in a happily ever after.
Relationships: Bryce Lahela/Ethan Ramsey/Main Character (Open Heart), Bryce Lahela/Main Character (Open Heart), Ethan Ramsey/Main Character (Open Heart)
Series: Bryce Lahela one shots [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2061831
Kudos: 6





	Happily Never After

Bryce Lahela sat by the bar at Donahue’s, downing his sixth, maybe seventh shot of tequila in the last hour, pairing it with the frequent beer in between the shots. He was well and truly drunk, but his thoughts remained sober, his mind wandering to her, to what could have been.

He thought of their first time, it was at her apartment after the housewarming party she and her roommates threw. It was well past midnight, she was lying in his arms, their limbs tangled but their hearts beating as one. 

That was before all the drama, before the ethics hearing, before him. Ethan Ramsey, the man holding her heart.

He knew, he knew he should’ve said something when she asked if he would be comfortable keeping their relationship casual, that they were both busy doctors and that a serious relationship wouldn’t work. He should’ve told her that he wanted nothing more than to be in a serious relationship with her, to be able to call her his, but he didn’t, and it’s one of his biggest regrets.

After that, their “casual relationship” seemed to only happen after she’d been rejected by him, after she had had an intimate moment with him, only for him to push her away, prioritizing his morals and ethics. Bryce would have laughed at him, how stupid it was of him to let her go. Every time she’d drunkenly show up at his one-bedroom apartment, he’d think that that would be the breaking point, that she would finally realize Ethan wasn’t worth it, and that he, Bryce Lahela, was willing to give her the world if only she’d say yes. 

But alas, she would always run back to Ethan, forgetting all about the love he had showered her with when she broke down, but he never spoke about it, insisting that she’d come around one day, eventually.

When she ran up to him after their shift and hugged him tightly, saying that she and Ethan had officially gotten together, he doubted it would last long, just like the other three times he had let her in, but he didn’t want to hurt her, so he ignored the prominent pang of jealousy he felt, burying it deep inside of him and congratulated her instead, reciprocating the hug.

Well, he was wrong. 

A little more than a year later, there he stood, at the corner of the room at their engagement party. His eyes were trained on them, his gaze strong enough to burn a hole through the pair, he saw them, all he could see was them flowing through the room in perfect sync, bodies close, his arm wrapped around her waist as they chatted with friends and asked other married couples for advice, not that they needed it anyway.

Not long after they went public with their relationship had they been deemed “Edenbrooke’s power couple.” Ethan couldn’t care less as he didn’t give a thought about gossip. She just shrugged it off like it was a tease or a joke like she expected it, but Bryce felt horrible. He winced every time he heard one of the nurses or interns call them that, or when they fawned over their “relationship goals”.

He felt even worse when Ethan slid into the seat next to him at the open bar, giving him a warm clap on the back, which used to be highly unusual of the great Ethan Ramsey. But soon after they got together, Ethan acknowledged that Bryce was a close, if not best, friend of hers and that he would have to learn to be friendly with him, which he ultimately did, judging by the hugs they had shared when Bryce would leave their shared apartment after sharing a nice dinner with them and the rest of the gang while Jackie and Sienna stood mouth agape, Elijah even slyly fishing his phone out of his pocket and snapping a picture or two hundred. 

Right now, as he sat beside Bryce making friendly small talk, Bryce only had one thought on his mind, “He really changed for her”. The old Ethan Ramsey wouldn’t even be glancing the way of the surgical resident but here he was, smiling, hugging him, making small talk? She had changed him for the better and there was no denying it.

Soon, she came by and pulled Ethan out of the conversation, quickly kissing him on the lips, saying they needed to make one more round before the end of the party and giving Bryce a sweet smile which he returned before they went to talk to the rest of the guests.

The worst he felt, however, was the day of their wedding. 

Yes, of course, he wanted nothing more than for her to be happy and he was relieved that Ethan was indeed serious about them, but he couldn’t help the anger boiling inside him when she walked down the aisle towards Ethan. 

The only emotions visible on her face was love, love and adoration, the same expression that was plastered on the man standing at the end of the aisle, eagerly waiting for her. 

The same expression that had been on his face ever since the day he met her. Every time he saw her jumping up and down after she’d solved a difficult case, and the one time when he noticed she had the same expression on her face was when they were caught in the rain. When they still had their “puppy love” of sorts, something that was no longer part of her thoughts, but instead clouded his mind every time he saw her.

Bryce’s hand laid on her lower back as they danced together. Her big doe eyes gazed up at him lovingly, though it wasn’t the type of love he craved for, it was a different type of love than the one he looked at her with. Hers was meaningful but completely platonic, while his longing and utterly romantic.

“And to think I wouldn’t have gotten the honor of dancing with the beautiful bride tonight,” He said, a smirk prominent on his face.

“I couldn’t very well forget about the most important man in my life now, could I?” She returned with a coy smile, laying her head on his shoulder.

“Ah, careful now, I don’t think you’re allowed to say that anymore, you’re a married woman!” He quipped back, hiding behind his facade of humor when he wanted nothing more than to tell her how he was desperately and embarrassingly in love with her, yet he couldn’t bring himself to do that to her, especially on her big day. 

She was about to retort when a voice interrupted her, “May I cut in?” Ethan said, extending a hand out to her.

“Hi, love,” she said to him before looking expectantly towards Bryce, as if asking for permission.

He flashed her his classic million-dollar smile, “go ahead, wouldn’t want to interrupt the happy couple on their big day!” He assured her and stepped away, even though it was the furthest thing from what he desired at that moment.

He struggled to blink back the tears that formed in his eyes as they danced in the middle of the room. Over a hundred pairs of eyes were trained on them, but they didn’t seem to notice. With her head comfortably on his chest and their bodies flush against each other, as they whispered tender nothings to each other, gazing deeply into each others’ eyes, he felt the jealousy and envy coursing through his veins.

“This is it,” he thought to himself, the crowd applauding and cheering as they kissed tenderly. 

His heart was shattered into a million little pieces. This is it, they’re married, they’re gonna spend the rest of their lives together, he no longer would be the person she would run to when she had a bad day, he would no longer drag her out of her apartment on their off days and lead her on unorthodox and crazy adventures, he could no longer look her in the eyes and sense a feeling of longing while they stood drenched from the rainwater, staring at each other as deeply as their eyes would allow, but there was no use denying it anymore: the thought, the dream, the fantasy that he could ever be the one for her was officially over. 

The crushing sensation of reality set in, Today…

Today, Bryce Lahela bid farewell to her, the person he wanted was no longer, the person that was as in love with him as he was her, there was no longer that little slither of hope that one day she would turn around and realize that he was so deeply and crushingly in love with her. He would never be Bryce Lahela—loving husband.

From that point on, he knew he would be Bryce, just Bryce— best friend.


End file.
